al-Sadr Extends Ceasefire

With al Qaida all but defeated in Baghdad and surrounding areas, the only other target would've been the Mahdi army. Moqtada al-Sadr extends the ceasefire with Coalition forces for another 6 months.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Powerful Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr extended his Mehdi Army militia ceasefire by six months on Friday, a decision U.S. officials said would help foster reconciliation among Iraq's divided communities.

The renewal was welcomed by Iraq's government and the U.S. military, which both say the initial six-month truce helped to reduce attacks on U.S. and Iraqi troops as well as tit-for-tat sectarian violence that pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war.

In a statement, the U.S. military said it was ready for dialogue with Sadr's movement, which opposes the American troop presence in Iraq. Sadr led his militia in two uprisings against U.S. forces in 2004.

....

A number of Mehdi Army members interviewed by Reuters expressed unhappiness with Sadr's order, which they believe will expose them to attack by U.S. forces, but said they would obey.

"We knew there would be an extension of the freeze, but we thought it would be for a shorter period and we expected to be allowed to act in self-defense against U.S. forces. Now, after this statement, we can't defend ourselves," said Amer al- Moussawi, a Mehdi Army member in the Shi'ite holy city of Najaf.